Motorcycle Riding

News bulletins about Motorcycle Riding, Training, and Safety.

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Road America introduces new motorcycle schoolThe Road America Motorcycle School is endorsed by the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT). Successful completion of the school's basic rider course enables participants to obtain a Class M endorsement on their driver's license from the WisDOT.Two MSF-designed courses will be offered by Road America: the Basic Rider Course (BRC) and the Experienced Rider Course (ERC). The BRC consists of 16 hours of combined classroom and practical riding instruction. Participants in this course learn basic riding techniques along with important safety skills to minimize the risks of motorcycling.Participants will use Suzuki GZ250s which are supplied by Road America. The course fee is $250.00. The ERC is for riders looking to sharpen and build on the skills learned in the BRC.

Monday, May 21, 2007

Rolls-Royce hosts launch of Bikesafe Sussex 2007Rolls-Royce Motor Cars hosted the launch of BikeSafe Sussex 2007 at the companys Goodwood manufacturing plant yesterday. Thirty employee motorcyclists were assessed by specially trained Sussex Police riders and advised on how to make their riding safer and more enjoyable.BikeSafe is an initiative run by police forces around the country which aims to reduce motorcycling casualties. This was the first time that BikeSafe Sussex has run a dedicated session for a local company. Other courses will be taking place during the summer months across Sussex that are open to all motorcyclists.

Monday, May 14, 2007

BA motorcyclist topping 120 mph slams into truck, diesTwo men died this week in separate motorcycle crashes, including one in which a man slammed his cycle into the back of a truck on a Tulsa highway at more than 120 mph. Dead are Brandon Lee White, 26, of Broken Arrow, and Gary Arden Hazelbaker, 62, of Perkins. The Tulsa collision happened about 1 a.m. Tuesday, Officer Jason Willingham said. Police said witnesses reported that White's motorcycle appeared to be going at least 120 mph when it crashed into the truck on U.S. 169 south of 81st Street. Police said the truck driver reported hearing a bump and then seeing debris from the motorcycle going past him. When he managed to pull over, he saw that a man was embedded in the back of his trailer, police said. White was dead at the scene.

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

Super Sky Cycle: A Genuine, Registered Flying MotorcycleMaybe you're a little nervous about strapping a pair of fiberglass and Kevlar wings on your back and taking to the skies. What if I told you that there not only was a flying motorcycle out there, but that it was also road-registered and ready for purchase by Joe Public? This is exactly the case withe Super Sky Cycle, developed by Larry Neal of The Butterfly LLC. Unlike other hobby aircraft, the Super Sky Cycle comes with a foldable rotor system that would allow you to effectively shrink down the large rotors spinning around on top of your head. This eliminates the problem of finding a suitable parking spot. This flying motorcycle also has a transmission that "can be switched between driving the rear rotor of the plane and driving the rear wheels." Neal claims that you can read speeds as high as 55mph on the road and "more than 100mph in the air with the standard engine, using standard pump gasoline." One small hiccup is that you have to piece together the US$37,195 airborne bike on your own.

Monday, April 30, 2007

WHO report says motorcycle accidents threaten youth healthThe World Health Organization (WHO) said here on Thursday with a report that deaths and disabilities resulting from motorcycle accidents involving youngsters have become a worldwide health hazard.Young motorcyclists make up a significant percentage of injuries and fatalities among road users, particularly in low and medium-income countries, the WHO Office of West Pacific Region based in Manila said in the report.Factors such as speed, no helmets, risk-taking behavior and drink-driving contribute to the rising trend, the WHO said.In low and medium-income countries, "vulnerable road users" including motorcyclists make up a larger proportion of those injured or killed than the rest of the world, the report said.In these countries, helmets are rarely used, partly because of their cost and partly because of a lack of helmets for young passengers, the WHO said.

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Making a difference for schools everywhereC2CRide.org is a non-profit organization which was founded in light of the Platte Canyon High School shooting in Bailey, Colorado, on September 27, 2006. The base fund raising activity comes from organized motorcycle rides, raising money and awareness. These rides bring communities together to support victims of recent or past school shootings. Monies are allocated to schools’ security budgets and objectives. C2CRide.org also assists other organizations in other worthy causes related to school violence. By hosting motorcycle rides through the riding season and to host at least one event during the ‘off-riding’ season; a portion of each ride will go to a pre-determined school or school district for the purpose of a security program or memorial; proceeds being set aside in an account in case of a tragedy for immediate release to assure assistance; and a small portion of proceeds to be used by the Ogranization to raise awareness through marketing and publicity to keep the Organization alive.

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Aaron Stevenson’s Cornerspeed Goes International With New School …Aaron Stevenson’s Cornerspeed Riderschool announces their new school: Cornerspeed International. For the past year, Stevenson has been working with many parties in Istanbul Turkey to bring this project to fruition. Working with Suzuki Turkey, the Turkish Motorcycle Federation and Istanbul Park, Cornerspeed will offer multi-levels of rider education and motorcycling involvement for the country of Turkey. Cornerespeed International COO Stephen O’Connor states, "The key to this entire project was Istanbul Park. Securing Istanbul Park was our main objective. In our meetings with Suzuki Turkey, it was clear that if we could establish our school at the prestigious F1 park that a relationship would form with Suzuki." Says Aaron Stevenson, CEO and Chief Instructor, "We want to do everything we can to help Suzuki Turkey become the number one brand in their country.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Sunday Morning Rides and Motoquest Collaborate to Showcase … SAN DIEGO, April 3 /PRNewswire/ — Sunday Morning Rides (SMR; http://sundaymorningrides.com/), a powerful new online trail and road mapping portal, has announced a new collaboration with Motoquest (http://motoquest.com.mx/), Mexico’s leading online motorcycle touring resource, to promote adventure riding in Mexico and Baja. The two websites will share technologies and content to showcase Motoquest’s historic tours that distinguish Mexico as one of the truly great motorcycle adventure destinations.By integrating Motoquest content via the SMR mapper interface, the collaboration will enable riders worldwide to interactively explore the detailed GPS tracks collected on Motoquest tours with enhanced imagery and motorcycle specific information and services. Santiago Calcagno, founder of Motoquest, describes the partnership as, "a step forward in the adoption of GPS and web mapping technologies for the motorcycling community," adding that such efforts will hopefully encourage companies like Google to extend their street map coverage into Mexico and touring destinations worldwide.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Ride the Motorcycle Highway of Life Safely at Valley CollegeGet ready to be inspired, because the same man who taught Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Jim Carrey and Martin Lawrence (long before "Wild Hogs") to ride motorcycles is the same man who can teach you about being safe on a bike. And he is as close as the north end of the Valley College campus.Michael "Red" Runyon is the guy with the Hollywood clientele and a down home approach rooted in his West Virginia upbringing."Proper preparation always prevents poor performance," he says without a hint of pessimism on his part.Runyon, 53, is the owner of the Motorcycle Training Center of Canoga Park, but on weekends for the last 10 years, he has been holding classes-through an arrangement with Valley-in north parking lots B and D.That’s where you’ll find him with his various bikes and equipment he provides.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Bike victim’s partner warns of speed danThe partner of a man who was killed when he lost control of his motorbike in order to avoid crashing into a bus is warning motorists to be more careful on the roads as the spring biking season gets underway.Nicky Dods’ call was also backed by road safety groups and the county council, which this week launched an awareness campaign to warn car drivers to be more bike-aware.Martin Armour died on November 23 last year at Ilketshall St John after he came off his Triumph to avoid smashing into a bus travelling in the opposite direction.Ms Dods, 41, a nurse in critical care at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, and mother of his one-year-old daughter Grace Armour, said: â€œI think car drivers needs to be made more aware of keeping an eye on other motorcyclists and there should be more emphasis placed when training motorists on the vulnerability of a two wheeled-machine.â€œBut I don’t think much can be done to make motorbikes safer."She said Mr Armour, an aeronautical engineer, was an â€œextremely safe" driver and had never been in an accident before and added: â€œPeople don’t fall off bikes without cars being involved."An inquest heard how Mr Armour, from Gloucester Street, appeared to drop from his bike on the A144 Bungay to Halesworth Road to avoid crashing into a bus and died from head and neck injuries and that speed was a factor.Ms Dods said: â€œDrivers are much more unsafe on the roads than motorcyclists because motorists feel protected by the metal, so they are more reckless and feel less vulnerable.â€œMotorcyclists and cyclists are much more cautious - they know it’s a dangerous game though."A spokeswoman for road safety charity BRAKE said: â€œThis is an issue which is of great concern as motorcyclists are extremely vulnerable.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Injured joyrider dies in hospital A TALLAI teen whose motorbike slammed into the rear of a van outside his home early on Sunday morning has died in hospital.Ben Kaljo, 16, died from head injuries shortly after noon yesterday in the intensive care unit of the Gold Coast Hospital.His death took the national Easter road toll to 25.Police said the unlicensed youth was riding a Husqvarna motorbike with a bald rear tyre and had no headlights on when he crashed at an estimated 80km/h into a white Hi-Ace van parked opposite his home in The Panorama at 12.15am.Police said a party was in progress at the teen’s home and young partygoers told officers the motorcyclist had been drinking before he rode the bike.He was the 18th motorcyclist killed in the Gold Coast region during the past 16 months, and the fifth this year.